René Cormier (born April 27, 1956) is a Canadian

Acadian The Acadians (; , ) are an ethnic group descended from the French who settled in the New France colony of Acadia during the 17th and 18th centuries. Today, most descendants of Acadians live in either the Northern American region of Acadia, ...

artist and activist from

New Brunswick New Brunswick is a Provinces and Territories of Canada, province of Canada, bordering Quebec to the north, Nova Scotia to the east, the Gulf of Saint Lawrence to the northeast, the Bay of Fundy to the southeast, and the U.S. state of Maine to ...

. He has been a senator from New Brunswick since 2016.

Early life and education

Raised in Caraquet, New Brunswick, he studied music at the

Université de Montréal The Université de Montréal (; UdeM; ) is a French-language public research university in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The university's main campus is located in the Côte-des-Neiges neighborhood of Côte-des-Neiges–Notre-Dame-de-Grâce on M ...

. Following university, Cormier was a musical and theatre director.

Political career

On October 27, 2016, Cormier was named to the

Senate of Canada The Senate of Canada () is the upper house of the Parliament of Canada. Together with the Monarchy of Canada#Parliament (King-in-Parliament), Crown and the House of Commons of Canada, House of Commons, they compose the Bicameralism, bicameral le ...

by Prime Minister

Justin Trudeau Justin Pierre James Trudeau (born December 25, 1971) is a Canadian politician who served as the 23rd prime minister of Canada from 2015 to 2025. He led the Liberal Party from 2013 until his resignation in 2025 and was the member of Parliament ...

to sit as an

independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in Pennsylvania, United States * Independentes (English: Independents), a Portuguese artist ...

. Cormier assumed his seat on November 10, 2016. A

Francophone The Francophonie or Francophone world is the whole body of people and organisations around the world who use the French language regularly for private or public purposes. The term was coined by Onésime Reclus in 1880 and became important a ...

, he is president of the ''Société Nationale de l'Acadie'' (SNA), the primary organization championing Acadian artists. Following his appointment to the Senate, Cormier stated that he plans to continue with his work with the SNA, while avoiding any conflicts of interest. He formerly served as president for the Commission internationale du theatre francophone, director of the , president of the , and as a member of the board for the Canadian Conference of the Arts.

Personal life

He is out as gay, and spearheaded the creation of the Canadian Pride Caucus, a non-partisan committee of Canada's LGBTQ MPs and senators.Dale Smith
"Queer MPs and senators across the political spectrum come together in Canadian Pride Caucus"
''

Xtra! ''Xtra Magazine'' (formerly ''DailyXtra'' and ''Xtra!'') is an LGBTQ-focused digital publication and former print newspaper published by Pink Triangle Press in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The publication is a continuation of the company's former p ...

'', January 5, 2023.

References

External links

* 1956 births Acadian people Artists from New Brunswick Independent Canadian senators Living people Canadian senators from New Brunswick Canadian theatre directors Independent Senators Group Canadian LGBTQ senators Canadian gay politicians 21st-century Canadian LGBTQ people Activists from New Brunswick People from Caraquet 21st-century members of the Senate of Canada {{NewBrunswick-politician-stub